The Times Higher Education Rankings of the Best Universities in the USA include a variety of universities, among which there are 181 best universities and colleges in the world. Wherever you want to study in the United States, the best university is not far away: almost all states and about 130 cities are on the list of the best American universities.
Higher education institutions at the top of the ranking are focused on popular areas of study; the top five are based in California and Massachusetts.
Prestigious American universities offer quality undergraduate, graduate, doctoral, internship, and graduate programs. Prestigious private universities in the United States allow you to get useful contacts in the chosen professional field, but the cost of studying is high, and the competition for admission is very high.
Public universities are cheaper, but this does not mean that the quality of education will always be lower, although they do not provide a selective environment.
Foreign students enter leading American universities after providing a certificate of 12-year secondary education, undergo special studying Advanced Placement, Pathway or International Foundation programs, and take the TOEFL test, which confirms knowledge of English.
Times Higher Education's best universities in USA 2026
| US rank 2024 | World University Rank 2024 | World University Rank 2023 | University | City | State |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | =3 | Stanford University | Stanford | California |
| 2 | 3 | 5 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) | Cambridge | Massachusetts |
| 3 | 4 | 2 | Harvard University | Cambridge | Massachusetts |
| 4 | 6 | 7 | Princeton University | Princeton | New Jersey |
| 5 | 7 | 6 | California Institute of Technology (Caltech) | Pasadena | California |
| 6 | 9 | 8 | University of California, Berkeley (UCB) | Berkeley | California |
| 7 | 10 | 9 | Yale University | New Haven | Connecticut |
| 8 | 13 | 13 | University of Chicago | Chicago | Illinois |
| 9 | 15 | 15 | Johns Hopkins University | Baltimore | Maryland |
| 10 | 16 | 14 | University of Pennsylvania | Philadelphia | Pennsylvania |
| 11 | 17 | =11 | Columbia University | New York City | New York |
| 12 | 18 | 21 | University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) | Los Angeles | California |
| 13 | 20 | 20 | Cornell University | Ithaca | New York |
| 14 | 23 | 23 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor | Ann Arbor | Michigan |
| 15 | 24 | 28 | Carnegie Mellon University | Pittsburgh | Pennsylvania |
| 16 | 25 | =26 | University of Washington | Seattle | Washington |
| 17 | 26 | 25 | Duke University | Durham | North Carolina |
| 18 | 27 | 24 | New York University (NYU) | New York City | New York |
| 19 | 28 | =26 | Northwestern University | Evanston | Illinois |
| 20 | 34 | 32 | University of California, San Diego (UCSD) | San Diego | California |
| 21 | 36 | 38 | Georgia Institute of Technology | Atlanta | Georgia |
| 22 | 42 | 48 | University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign | Champaign | Illinois |
| 23 | 52 | 50 | University of Texas at Austin | Austin | Texas |
| 24 | 59 | 63 | University of California, Davis | Davis | California |
| 25 | 63 | 81 | University of Wisconsin-Madison | Madison | Wisconsin |
| 26 | =64 | 61 | Brown University | Providence | Rhode Island |
| 27 | 68 | 57 | Washington University in St. Louis | St Louis | Missouri |
| 28 | 69 | 64 | University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) | Santa Barbara | California |
| 29 | 72 | 69 | University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill | Chapel Hill | North Carolina |
| 30 | 74 | 65 | University of Southern California | Los Angeles | California |
| 31 | 78 | =71 | Boston University | Boston | Massachusetts |
| 32 | 85 | =101 | University of Minnesota | Minneapolis | Minnesota |
| 33 | 86 | 127 | Purdue University West Lafayette | West Lafayette | Indiana |
| =34 | =92 | =95 | University of California, Irvine | Irvine | California |
| =34 | =92 | 98 | Vanderbilt University | Nashville | Tennessee |
| 36 | =99 | 112 | The Ohio State University | Columbus | Ohio |
| 37 | =106 | =82 | Emory University | Atlanta | Georgia |
| 38 | 114 | =104 | University of Maryland, College Park | College Park | Maryland |
| 39 | =116 | 106 | Michigan State University | East Lansing | Michigan |
| 40 | 118 | 181 | Texas A&M University | College Station | Texas |
| 41 | =119 | 147 | Rice University | Houston | Texas |
| 42 | 122 | =151 | Penn State (Main campus) | State College | Pennsylvania |
| 43 | =123 | 191 | University of Massachusetts | Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth, Lowell, Worcester | Massachusetts |
| 44 | 132 | =151 | University of Florida | Gainesville | Florida |
| 45 | 133 | 154 | University of Rochester | Rochester | New York |
| 46 | =138 | =148 | University of Colorado Boulder | Boulder | Colorado |
| 47 | =145 | 144 | University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh campus | Pittsburgh | Pennsylvania |
| 48 | =155 | 180 | University of Arizona | Tucson | Arizona |
| 49 | =161 | 123 | Dartmouth College | Hanover | New Hampshire |
| 50 | =164 | 134 | Case Western Reserve University | Cleveland | Ohio |
